World Number 2 Heads Men's Singles Entry at the 24th British Open

NEWS ARTICLE

Gordon Reid (GBR)

World No. 2 Stephane Houdet heads a men’s singles entry that includes nine of the world’s top ten players at the 24th British Open starting this week. The London silver medallist is returning to Britain after winning his second Wimbledon doubles title recently.The fifth Super Series event of the year on the NEC Wheelchair Tennis Tour gets underway on Tuesday at the Nottingham Tennis Centre in Great Britain.

Former two-time champion Maikel Scheffers of the Netherlands and British No. 1 and world No. 4 Gordon Reid will also be among the leading contenders, with Reid bidding to emulate his achievement in Nottingham last year, when he reached the first of his two career Super Series finals to date.

“The last year for me has been amazing and it started with reaching my first Super Series final at the British Open,” said Reid. “There’s plenty at stake this year, but fellow Scot Andy Murray’s victory at Wimbledon was so inspiring and I will be doing my best to produce another big performance on home soil.”

Reid is drawn in the same half of the men’s draw as top seed Houdet and Dutch sixth seed Ronald Vink. Vink could potentially face British No. 3 Marc McCarroll in the second round.

A fascinating women’s singles entry includes seven of the world’s top ten players, including 2012 runner-up Aniek van Koot, who went on replace her now-retired fellow Dutchwoman and 12-time British Open champion Esther Vergeer as world No. 1 in January.

Since then, Germany’s Sabine Ellerbrock has taken over the word No. 1 spot from London 2012 silver medallist van Koot and both players will be among the leading contenders in Nottingham, alongside Brits Lucy Shuker and Jordanne Whiley.

With all the main protagonists having byes into the second round of the women’s singles, sixth seed and world No. 7 Shuker will meet Colombia’s Angelica Bernal later in the week for a place in the quarterfinals. Seventh seed Whiley will meet Christine Schoenn of France as they also vie for a place in the last eight.

One of the most eye-catching first round matches sees British No. 3 Louise Hunt face Colombia’s Johana Martinez for the chance to face Dutch fourth seed Marjolein Buis.

Ellerbrock will play Brit Laura Coteman or Japan’s Miho Nijo in her opening match, while van Koot will face one of two British opponents, Lauren Jones or Val Fisher.

World No. 1 David Wagner of USA and world No. 3 Lucas Sithole of South Africa head the entries for the quad singles. Wagner will begin his bid to regain the British Open titleagainst one of two Brits, Richard Green or James Shaw. Wagner is in the same half of the draw as Canadian third seed Sarah Hunter.

Jamie Burdekin will be hoping for another big performance, having beaten Wagner in the semifinals of last year’s British Open to reach his second Super Series quad singles final. Burdekin meets fellow Brit Adam Field in the first round of the quad singles.

Britain’s world No. 9 Antony Cotterill will play Sophie Fraioli of France for the right to play South African second seed Sithole in the quad singles quarterfinals.